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115-487: The Anacapa Island State Marine Reserve (SMR) is a protected marine reserve located off the coast of Southern California , encompassing the area of water immediately north of Anacapa Island . Established to safeguard the marine ecosystems and biodiversity of the region, the reserve is one of the thirteen Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) of the larger Channel Islands National Park network. Anacapa State Marine Reserve covers an area of 11.55 square miles (29.9 km) and has

230-498: A Grumman TBF Avenger is situated within the Anacapa Marine Protected Area. It holds historical significance as a World War II United States Navy torpedo bomber. During a training exercise in the early 1950s, it collided with one of the other four aircraft in the formation, resulting in both planes crashing. The Avenger descended on the east side of Anacapa without any casualties. The other plane crashed on

345-458: A moment magnitude of 9.2 (more than a thousand times as powerful as the 1989 San Francisco earthquake ). The time of day (5:36 pm), time of year (spring) and location of the epicenter were all cited as factors in potentially sparing thousands of lives, particularly in Anchorage. Alaska suffered a more severe megathrust earthquake on July 11, 1585, estimated at magnitude 9.25, which remains

460-409: A territory on May 11, 1912. It was admitted as the 49th state of the U.S. on January 3, 1959. Abundant natural resources have enabled Alaska— with one of the smallest state economies—to have one of the highest per capita incomes , with commercial fishing , and the extraction of natural gas and oil, dominating Alaska's economy . U.S. Armed Forces bases and tourism also contribute to

575-581: A bipartite life cycle where larvae are pelagic before settling out of the plankton to live on a reef. While these fish travel varying distances during their life history, their larvae have the potential to move tens to hundreds of km, more than the more sedentary adults and juveniles, which have home ranges of <1 m to a few km. Adults and juveniles of some species travel tens to hundreds of kilometers as they mature to reach appropriate habitats (e.g., such as coral reef, mangrove and seagrass habitats) or to migrate to spawning areas. When adults and juveniles leave

690-610: A coastline natural arch at the extreme east point of East Anacapa, to Tidepools, on the east part of West Anacapa. The reserve is one of the four Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) that are situated on the north side of Anacapa Island. The reserve shares a northern border with the Federal Anacapa Island Marine Reserve (FMR) and a western border with the Anacapa Island State Marine Conservation Area (SMCA) and

805-399: A convoy to Valdez. On the advice of military and civilian leaders, President Lyndon B. Johnson declared all of Alaska a major disaster area the day after the quake. The U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard deployed ships to isolated coastal communities to assist with immediate needs. Bad weather and poor visibility hampered air rescue and observation efforts the day after the quake, but on Sunday

920-670: A landing dock. Bird watching is a recreational activity offered by the State Marine Reserve due to the location of important nesting grounds for a substantial population of western gulls , Cassin's auklets, and Brandt's cormorants. The cliffs represent the sole nesting location for California brown pelicans along the West Coast of the United States and include the world's largest population of Scripps's murrelets . Educational programs for students are provided by

1035-406: A longer coastline than all the other U.S. states combined. At 663,268 square miles (1,717,856 km ) in total area, Alaska is by far the largest state in the United States. Alaska is more than twice the size of the second-largest U.S. state (Texas), and it is larger than the next three largest states (Texas, California, and Montana) combined. Alaska is the seventh largest subnational division in

1150-469: A marine reserve, they become vulnerable to fishing. However, larvae can generally leave a reserve without elevated risk because of their small size and limited fishery exposure. Effective networks account for the movement patterns of target species at each life cycle stage. Given a strong, consistent current, siting marine reserves upstream increases downstream populations. Marine reserves are distinct from marine parks , and marine sanctuaries , but there

1265-813: A massive underwater landslide, resulting in the deaths of 32 people between the collapse of the Valdez city harbor and docks, and inside the ship that was docked there at the time. Nearby, a 27-foot (8.2 m) tsunami destroyed the village of Chenega , killing 23 of the 68 people who lived there; survivors out-ran the wave, climbing to high ground. Post-quake tsunamis severely affected Whittier , Seward , Kodiak, and other Alaskan communities, as well as people and property in British Columbia, Washington , Oregon , and California . Tsunamis also caused damage in Hawaii and Japan . Evidence of motion directly related to

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1380-493: A means to safeguard the uninterrupted movement of life within marine ecosystems. Each MPA within this network has unique goals and rules. Non-consumptive activities, scientific research, monitoring efforts, and educational endeavours may be authorized within these designated areas. Activities such as fishing and collecting are strictly prohibited within Anacapa Island State Marine Reserve, which

1495-1321: A network must respect larval dispersal and movement patterns of species that are targeted for protection. Existing ecological guidelines for designing networks independently focus on achieving either fisheries, biodiversity or climate change objectives or combinations of fisheries and biodiversity or biodiversity and climate change. These three goals have different implications for network design. The most important are reserve size and protection duration (permanent, long term, short term, or periodic closures). Maintaining diversity involves protecting all species. Generally this involves protecting adequate examples of each major habitat (e.g., each type of coral reef, mangrove and seagrass community). Resiliency to threats improves when multiple examples of each habitat are protected. To address biodiversity or climate change, reserves 4–20 km across are recommended, because they protect larger populations of more species. Protecting areas that have already proven resilient to ecological changes and/or are relatively well-protected by other protocols are likely to better survive climate change as well. Reserves 0.5–1 km across export more adults and larvae to fished areas, potentially increasing recruitment and stock replenishment there. Such small reserves are common in

1610-670: A population that was genetically separate from other native groups present elsewhere in the New World at the end of the Pleistocene . Ben Potter, the University of Alaska Fairbanks archaeologist who unearthed the remains at the Upward Sun River site in 2013, named this new group Ancient Beringian . The Tlingit people developed a society with a matrilineal kinship system of property inheritance and descent in what

1725-404: A shoreline span of 3.1 miles (5.0 km). The reserve protects sandy beaches, extensive rocky shores, surf grass beds, kelp forests , deep offshore sand, and rocky seafloor to depths greater than 700 feet (210 m) below sea level. The reserve includes a Special Closure area of approximately 1 square mile (2.6 km) to protect seabirds and marine species. Anacapa State Marine Reserve (SMR)

1840-649: A total of 50 Aleut civilians and eight sailors were interned in Japan. About half of the Aleuts died during the period of internment. Unalaska / Dutch Harbor and Adak became significant bases for the United States Army , United States Army Air Forces and United States Navy. The United States Lend-Lease program involved flying American warplanes through Canada to Fairbanks and then Nome ; Soviet pilots took possession of these aircraft, ferrying them to fight

1955-750: Is a major fishery threat. Local practices such as overfishing, blast fishing, trawling, coastal development and pollution threaten many marine habitats. These threats decrease ecosystem health and productivity and adversely affect focal and other species. Such practices can also decrease resilience. Some practices that originate beyond reserve boundaries (e.g., runoff ) can be mitigated by considering their impacts within broader management frameworks. Areas that are not threatened by such practices and that are adjacent to other unthreatening areas may be better choices for reserves. Networks of marine reserves can support both fisheries management and biodiversity conservation . The size, spacing and location of reserves within

2070-482: Is a potential risk of the nets coming into contact with corals and sponges, inadvertently causing damage. Additional threats include climate change, the extraction of gas and oil, submarine cables, and debris on the seabed. The Channel Islands National Park and Marine Sanctuary provide habitat for significant breeding populations of pinnipeds . In particular, the Anacapa State Marine Reserve is

2185-797: Is based on the testimony of Chukchi geographer Nikolai Daurkin, who had visited Alaska in 1764–1765 and who had reported on a village on the Kheuveren River, populated by "bearded men" who "pray to the icons ". Some modern researchers associate Kheuveren with Koyuk River . The first European vessel to reach Alaska is generally held to be the St. Gabriel under the authority of the surveyor M. S. Gvozdev and assistant navigator I. Fyodorov on August 21, 1732, during an expedition of Siberian Cossack A. F. Shestakov and Russian explorer Dmitry Pavlutsky (1729–1735). Another European contact with Alaska occurred in 1741, when Vitus Bering led an expedition for

2300-884: Is bordered by Canada's Yukon and British Columbia to the east (making it the only state to border only a Canadian territory ); the Gulf of Alaska and the Pacific Ocean to the south and southwest; the Bering Sea , Bering Strait , and Chukchi Sea to the west; and the Arctic Ocean to the north. Alaska's territorial waters touch Russia's territorial waters in the Bering Strait, as the Russian Big Diomede Island and Alaskan Little Diomede Island are only 3 miles (4.8 km) apart. Alaska has

2415-686: Is common. The review indicated that effective marine reserves are more than twice the size of the home range of focal/target species (in all directions). The presence of effective marine management outside the reserve may allow smaller reserves. Reserve size recommendations apply to the specific habitats of focal species, not the overall size. For example, coral reef species require coral reef habitats rather than open ocean or seagrass beds. Marine reserve whose boundaries are extensively fished benefit from compact shapes (e.g., squares or circles rather than elongated rectangles). Including whole ecological units (e.g., an offshore reef) can reduce exports where that

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2530-724: Is desired. Minimum sustainable population sizes have not been determined for most marine populations. Instead, fisheries ecologists use the fraction of unfished stock levels as a proxy. Meta-analyses suggest that maintaining populations above ~37% of those levels generally ensures stable populations, although variations in fishing pressure allow fractions as small as 10% or as large as 40% (to protect species such as sharks and some grouper that have lower reproductive output or slower maturation). Higher fractions of habitat protection may protect areas vulnerable to disturbances such as typhoons or climate change. 20–30% protection can achieve fisheries objectives in areas with controlled fishing pressure and

2645-492: Is divided into boroughs . Delegates to the Alaska Constitutional Convention wanted to avoid the pitfalls of the traditional county system and adopted their own unique model. Many of the more densely populated parts of the state are part of Alaska's 16 boroughs, which function somewhat similarly to counties in other states. Unlike county-equivalents in the other states, the boroughs do not cover

2760-569: Is home to Mount Shishaldin , which is an occasionally smoldering volcano that rises to 10,000 feet (3,000 m) above the North Pacific. The chain of volcanoes extends to Mount Spurr , west of Anchorage on the mainland. Geologists have identified Alaska as part of Wrangellia , a large region consisting of multiple states and Canadian provinces in the Pacific Northwest , which is actively undergoing continent building . One of

2875-629: Is known for its massive reserves of crude oil and contains both the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska and the Prudhoe Bay Oil Field . The city of Utqiaġvik , formerly known as Barrow, is the northernmost city in the United States and is located here. The Northwest Arctic area , anchored by Kotzebue and also containing the Kobuk River valley, is often considered part of this region. The respective Inupiat of

2990-593: Is located in Ventura County, California off the north coast of Anacapa Island, the smallest of the northern islands of the Channel Islands archipelago. Anacapa State Marine Reserve is approximately 11 miles (18 km) from the urbanized coast of Southern California and the closest major city is Ventura . The waters of the Marine Reserve cover the north coast of Anacapa Island from Arch Rock,

3105-455: Is maintained by the Office of History and Archaeology. The survey's inventory of cultural resources includes objects, structures, buildings, sites, districts, and travel ways, with a general provision that they are more than fifty years old. As of 31 January 2012 , more than 35,000 sites have been reported. Alaska is not divided into counties , as most of the other U.S. states, but it

3220-516: Is now Southeast Alaska , became the capital of Russian America . It remained the capital after the colony was transferred to the United States. The Russians never fully colonized Alaska, and the colony was never very profitable. Evidence of Russian settlement in names and churches survives throughout southeastern Alaska. In 1867, William H. Seward , the United States Secretary of State under President Andrew Johnson , negotiated

3335-617: Is owned and managed by the U.S. federal government as public lands, including a multitude of national forests , national parks, and national wildlife refuges . Of these, the Bureau of Land Management manages 87 million acres (35 million hectares), or 23.8% of the state. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service . It is the world's largest wildlife refuge, comprising 16 million acres (6.5 million hectares). Of

3450-532: Is proportionally the second highest of any U.S. state, at over 15 percent, after only Hawaii. The name "Alaska" ( Russian : Аля́ска , romanized :  Aljáska ) was introduced during the Russian colonial period when it was used to refer to the Alaska Peninsula . It was derived from an Aleut-language idiom , alaxsxaq , meaning "the mainland" or, more literally, "the object towards which

3565-492: Is regarded as one of the most protected MPAs in the region. A range of specific activities are illegal, except under a scientific collecting license for a national reserve, with commission approval or as a result of explicitly sanctioned fishing: Vessels are permitted to navigate through Anacapa State Marine Reserve while carrying a catch, and anchoring with a catch is allowed in designated areas. Public safety activities are permitted within Anacapa State Marine Reserve, including

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3680-673: Is significant for its location on an important gray whale migration route. Gray whales spend their summers feeding in the nutrient-rich waters of the Arctic, and in September they start migrating south along the coastline to breed and calve in Baja California , Mexico . Between February and April, gray whales return on the northward journey. During this migration, gray whales cross the Santa Barbara Channel (also called

3795-400: Is some overlap in usage. As of April 2008 no high seas marine reserves had been established. Greenpeace is campaigning for the "doughnut holes" of the western pacific to be declared as marine reserves and for 40 percent of the world's oceans to be so protected. Alaska Alaska ( / ə ˈ l æ s k ə / ə- LASS -kə ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on

3910-580: Is technically part of the continental U.S. , but is not usually included in the colloquial use of the term; Alaska is not part of the contiguous U.S. , often called " the Lower 48 ". The capital city, Juneau , is situated on the mainland of the North American continent but is not connected by road to the rest of the North American highway system. The largest lake in Alaska is Lake Illiamna . The state

4025-602: Is the Winfield Scott wreck , the remains of a paddle steamer that sank in the Santa Barbara Channel in 1853. Anacapa Island State Marine Reserve is a popular location for sea kayaking, with a shoreline characterised by cliffs, coves and numerous sea caves, including the iconic Arch Rock. Due to potentially strong currents along its shore, kayakers are warned to have moderate experience in ocean kayaking. The lack of an accessible beach for access and egress requires kayakers arriving by boat to lower and raise kayaks by rope from

4140-406: Is the seventh-largest subnational division in the world . It is the third-least populous and most sparsely populated U.S. state, but is, with a population of 736,081 as of 2020 , the continent's most populous territory located mostly north of the 60th parallel , with more than quadruple the combined populations of Northern Canada and Greenland . The state contains the four largest cities in

4255-618: Is the largest glacier in North America, covering 2,008 square miles (5,200 km ) alone. There are no officially defined borders demarcating the various regions of Alaska, but there are five/six regions that the state is most commonly broken up into: The most populous region of Alaska contains Anchorage , the Matanuska-Susitna Valley and the Kenai Peninsula . Rural, mostly unpopulated areas south of

4370-772: Is the minimum level of habitat protection recommended by IUCN - WCPA . Many fish species congregate to facilitate spawning. Such congregations are spatially and temporally predictable and increase the species' vulnerability to overfishing. Species such as groupers and rabbitfishes travel long distances to congregate for days or weeks. Such gatherings are their only opportunities to reproduce and are crucial to population maintenance. Species such as snappers and parrotfishes congregate in feeding or resting areas. Juveniles may congregate in nursery areas without adults. Such special areas may require only seasonal protections if at other times no vital activities are taking place. Such reserves must be spaced to allow focal species to journey among them. If

4485-596: Is the northernmost and westernmost state in the United States, but also has the most easterly longitude in the United States because the Aleutian Islands extend into the Eastern Hemisphere . Alaska is the only non- contiguous U.S. state on continental North America; about 500 miles (800 km) of Canadian territory consisting of British Columbia (in Canada ) separates Alaska from Washington . It

4600-614: Is today Southeast Alaska, along with parts of British Columbia and the Yukon . Also in Southeast were the Haida , now well known for their unique arts. The Tsimshian people came to Alaska from British Columbia in 1887, when President Grover Cleveland , and later the U.S. Congress, granted them permission to settle on Annette Island and found the town of Metlakatla, Alaska . All three of these peoples, as well as other indigenous peoples of

4715-650: The Exxon Valdez hit a reef in the Prince William Sound, spilling more than 11 million gallons (42 megalitres) of crude oil over 1,100 miles (1,800 km) of coastline. Today, the battle between philosophies of development and conservation is seen in the contentious debate over oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the proposed Pebble Mine . Located at the northwest corner of North America , Alaska

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4830-650: The Alaska Peninsula are considered part of the Southwest, with the Aleutian Islands often (but not always) being grouped in as well. While primarily part of Southwest Alaska when grouped economically, the Aleutian islands are sometimes recognized as an alternate group from the rest of the region due to the geographic separation from the continent. More than 300 small volcanic islands make up this chain, which stretches more than 1,200 miles (1,900 km) into

4945-755: The Alaska Purchase (referred to pejoratively as Seward's Folly) with the Russians for $ 7.2 million. Russia's contemporary ruler Tsar Alexander II , the Emperor of the Russian Empire , King of Poland and Grand Duke of Finland , also planned the sale; the purchase was made on March 30, 1867. Six months later the commissioners arrived in Sitka and the formal transfer was arranged; the formal flag-raising took place at Fort Sitka on October 18, 1867. In

5060-631: The Alaska Purchase . The region is dominated by the Alexander Archipelago as well as the Tongass National Forest , the largest national forest in the United States. It contains the state capital Juneau , the former capital Sitka , and Ketchikan , at one time Alaska's largest city. The Alaska Marine Highway provides a vital surface transportation link throughout the area and country, as only three communities ( Haines , Hyder and Skagway ) enjoy direct connections to

5175-669: The Alaska Range and west of the Wrangell Mountains also fall within the definition of South Central, as do the Prince William Sound area and the communities of Cordova and Valdez . Also referred to as the Panhandle or Inside Passage , this is the region of Alaska closest to the contiguous states. As such, this was where most of the initial non-indigenous settlement occurred in the years following

5290-868: The Coral Triangle , species at lower trophic levels that have smaller maximum sizes, faster growth and maturation rates and shorter life spans tend to recover more quickly than species having the opposite characteristics. For example, in the Philippines, populations of planktivores (e.g., fusiliers) and some herbivores (e.g., parrotfishes) recovered in < 5–10 years in marine reserves, while predators (e.g., groupers) took 20–40 years. Increased fishing pressure adversely affects recovery rates (e.g., Great Barrier Reef and Papua New Guinea). Long-term protection allows species with slower recovery rates to achieve and maintain ecosystem health and associated fishery benefits. Permanent protection protects these species over

5405-639: The Coral Triangle , where they benefited some fisheries. Connectivity is the linking of local populations through the (voluntary) dispersal of individuals. Connected reserves are close enough to each other that larvae, juveniles or adults can cross from one to another as their behavior patterns dictate. Connectivity is a key factor in network design, since it allows a disturbed reserve to recover by recruiting individuals from other, potentially overpopulated, reserves. Effective networks spaced reserves at distances of <15 km from each other, with smaller reserves spaced more closely. Most coastal fish species have

5520-623: The Marine Life Protection Act , which dictated the necessity of monitoring and research concerning the status of marine fauna, habitat, and ecosystems. An assessment of the State Marine Reserve is required; this allows both the evaluation of the effectiveness of the Marine Protected Area and the making of informed management decisions. The monitoring program of the MPAs is divided into two ecosystem-based phases:

5635-667: The National Wildlife Refuge system , parts of 25 rivers to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers system , 3.3 million acres (13,000 km ) to National Forest lands , and 43.6 million acres (176,000 km ) to National Park land . Because of the Act, Alaska now contains two-thirds of all American national parklands. Today, more than half of Alaskan land is owned by the Federal Government . In 1989,

5750-715: The Partnership for Interdisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans (PISCO). Abalone and sea urchins are the subject of study. The citizen-scientist group Reef Check California participates by offering help in the collection of data regarding rocky reefs, kelp forests, and fin fish. Monitoring studies carried out by PISCO have shown a rise in the biomass of species in northern Channel Islands MPAs, which include Anacapa State Marine Reserve, in comparison with data from 2003. A range of research studies have been undertaken at Anacapa State Marine Reserve. From 2019 to 2021 Baited remote underwater video (BRUV) landers were used to measure

5865-631: The United States National System of Marine Protected Areas , Anacapa State Marine Reserve is a designated area primarily established to safeguard and preserve marine life in marine or estuarine waters. California's MPA Network comprises 124 areas with different degrees of protection, along with 14 Special Closures, all aimed at safeguarding the marine ecosystems of the state. California Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) were established to situate them strategically close to each other, forming an interconnected network. This network serves as

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5980-418: The public record in Alaska. The state is divided into 34 recording districts which are centrally administered under a state recorder . All recording districts use the same acceptance criteria, fee schedule, etc., for accepting documents into the public record. Whereas many U.S. states use a three-tiered system of decentralization—state/county/township—most of Alaska uses only two tiers—state/borough. Owing to

6095-410: The 'migrant corridor') passing through Anacapa State Marine Reserve. Gray whales are commonly sighted in the reserve from mid-to-late December through to mid-March, while blue and humpback whales are prevalent during the summer. Common dolphins can be observed throughout the entire year. Whale watching can be done both from shore or aboard boats. Anacapa State Marine Reserve is one of the recipients of

6210-469: The 29th the situation improved and rescue helicopters and observation aircraft were deployed. A military airlift immediately began shipping relief supplies to Alaska, eventually delivering 2,570,000 pounds (1,170,000 kg) of food and other supplies. Broadcast journalist, Genie Chance , assisted in recovery and relief efforts, staying on the KENI air waves over Anchorage for more than 24 continuous hours as

6325-675: The Alaska Division of Emergency Services to respond to any future disasters. The 1968 discovery of oil at Prudhoe Bay and the 1977 completion of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System led to an oil boom. Royalty revenues from oil have funded large state budgets from 1980 onward. Oil production was not the only economic value of Alaska's land. In the second half of the 20th century, Alaska discovered tourism as an important source of revenue. Tourism became popular after World War II when military personnel stationed in

6440-775: The Anacapa Ecological Reserve. In 1998, a proposal regarding the establishment of marine protected areas was submitted by a group of recreational fishermen. A community-based plan, directed by the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary and the California Department of Fish and Game , was organised to design a network of MPAs. This group of stakeholders was called the Marine Reserves Working Group (MRWG) and included members of

6555-399: The Anacapa State Marine Reserve forms a square with corners at the following GPS coordinates: 34° 04.998′ N. lat., 119° 24.600′ W. long.; 34° 04.998′ N. lat., 119° 21.400′ W. long.; 34° 03.870′ N. lat., 119° 21.400′ W. long.; 34° 03.726′ N. lat., 119° 24.600′ W. long. According to the 2009 George Wright Society Conference, before 2003 the area of Anacapa State Marine Reserve was protected by

6670-627: The Baseline Monitoring and the Long-Term Monitoring. Anacapa State Marine Reserve Baseline Monitoring took place from 2007 to 2018. Projects related to the Long-Term Monitoring were subsidized between 2019 and 2022. Part of the research studies and monitoring of Anacapa State Marine Reserve is directed by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, cooperatively with Channel Islands National Park and

6785-516: The Channel Islands National Park. During these programs, participants can learn more about marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Students targeted for these programs range from elementary school to high school. During the summer months, "Live Dives" are available, providing visitors with the opportunity to witness live underwater dives and explore the marine environment in real time. Visitors can watch underwater activities within

6900-685: The East Santa Barbara Channel has been tested using acoustic tagging of rockfish and lingcod . Although 75% of the trans-located fish remained in Anacapa SMR waters, the plan was not been implemented due to high costs and the proportion of lingcod which returned to their original habitat. Anacapa State Marine Reserve provides various sites for different marine-related activities and sports such as sea-kayaking, scuba diving, snorkeling, and swimming. The National Park Service allows boat trips to Anacapa Island. Boats depart from

7015-428: The Federal Anacapa Island Marine Conservation Area (FMCA). Anacapa Island and the neighbouring Santa Cruz Island , Santa Rosa Island and Santa Barbara Island are part of the Channel Islands National Park. Anacapa State Marine Reserve is also encompassed in the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary , which is an area that protects determined marine ecosystems within the United States waters. The defined area of

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7130-558: The German invasion of the Soviet Union . The construction of military bases contributed to the population growth of some Alaskan cities. Statehood for Alaska was an important cause of James Wickersham early in his tenure as a congressional delegate. Decades later, the statehood movement gained its first real momentum following a territorial referendum in 1946. The Alaska Statehood Committee and Alaska's Constitutional Convention would soon follow. Statehood supporters also found themselves fighting major battles against political foes, mostly in

7245-473: The Marine Protected Area without diving by observing the underwater program directly from the shore. Park rangers descend into the kelp forest with dive masks featuring microphones and carrying cameras to capture the underwater scenery and provide explanations about the marine environment that they are recording. Marine reserve As of 2010, scientists had studied more than 150 marine reserves in at least 61 countries and monitored biological changes inside

7360-407: The North Slope and of the Northwest Arctic seldom consider themselves to be one people. Southwest Alaska is a sparsely inhabited region stretching some 500 miles (800 km) inland from the Bering Sea. Most of the population lives along the coast. Kodiak Island is also located in the Southwest. The massive Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta , one of the largest river deltas in the world, is here. Portions of

7475-507: The Pacific Northwest Coast , experienced smallpox outbreaks from the late 18th through the mid- 19th century , with the most devastating epidemics occurring in the 1830s and 1860s, resulting in high fatalities and social disruption. Some researchers believe the first Russian settlement in Alaska was established in the 17th century. According to this hypothesis, in 1648 several koches of Semyon Dezhnyov 's expedition came ashore in Alaska by storm and founded this settlement. This hypothesis

7590-415: The Pacific Northwest. In 1789, a Spanish settlement and fort were built in Nootka Sound . These expeditions gave names to places such as Valdez , Bucareli Sound , and Cordova . Later, the Russian-American Company carried out an expanded colonization program during the early-to-mid-19th century. Sitka , renamed New Archangel from 1804 to 1867, on Baranof Island in the Alexander Archipelago in what

7705-439: The Pacific Ocean. Some of these islands fall in the Eastern Hemisphere, but the International Date Line was drawn west of 180° to keep the whole state, and thus the entire North American continent, within the same legal day. Two of the islands, Attu and Kiska , were occupied by Japanese forces during World War II. According to an October 1998 report by the United States Bureau of Land Management , approximately 65% of Alaska

7820-401: The Russian Navy aboard the St. Peter . After his crew returned to Russia with sea otter pelts judged to be the finest fur in the world, small associations of fur traders began to sail from the shores of Siberia toward the Aleutian Islands. The first permanent European settlement was founded in 1784. Between 1774 and 1800, Spain sent several expeditions to Alaska to assert its claim over

7935-436: The U.S. Congress but also within Alaska. Statehood was approved by the U.S. Congress on July 7, 1958; Alaska was officially proclaimed a state on January 3, 1959. On March 27, 1964, the massive Good Friday earthquake killed 133 people and destroyed several villages and portions of large coastal communities, mainly by the resultant tsunamis and landslides. It was the fourth-most-powerful earthquake in recorded history, with

8050-434: The United States by area , including the state capital of Juneau . The state's most populous city is Anchorage , and approximately half of Alaska's residents live within its metropolitan area . Indigenous people have lived in Alaska for thousands of years, and it is widely believed that the region served as the entry point for the initial settlement of North America by way of the Bering land bridge . The Russian Empire

8165-458: The absence of a persistent linking current. Their isolation (low connectivity) requires such areas to be largely self-replenishing. This leaves them less resilient to disturbance. Sustaining their marine species requires a higher fraction of living areas to be protected. Coral reef fish species recovery rates (from e.g., overfishing) depend on their life history and factors such as ecological characteristics, fishing intensity and population size. In

8280-626: The action of the sea is directed". Numerous indigenous peoples occupied Alaska for thousands of years before the arrival of European peoples to the area. Linguistic and DNA studies done here have provided evidence for the settlement of North America by way of the Bering land bridge . At the Upward Sun River site in the Tanana Valley in Alaska, remains of a six-week-old infant were found. The baby's DNA showed that she belonged to

8395-494: The ceremony, 250 uniformed U.S. soldiers marched to the governor's house at "Castle Hill", where the Russian troops lowered the Russian flag and the U.S. flag was raised. This event is celebrated as Alaska Day , a legal holiday on October 18. Alaska was loosely governed by the military initially and was administered as a district starting in 1884, with a governor appointed by the United States president. A federal district court

8510-407: The cities of Ventura, and Oxnard . Numerous local dive companies offer excursions through the kelp forest, sea caves , and coves. Swimmers, snorkelers, and divers can see the variety of species of fish and vegetation of the Marine Reserve. Divers can explore several dive sites at depths ranging from 50–120 feet (15–37 m), with visibility averaging from 30–80 feet (9.1–24.4 m). The wreck of

8625-555: The city proper and the communities of Eagle River, Chugiak, Peters Creek, Girdwood, Bird, and Indian. Fairbanks has a separate borough (the Fairbanks North Star Borough ) and municipality (the City of Fairbanks). The state's most populous city is Anchorage , home to 291,247 people in 2020. The richest location in Alaska by per capita income is Denali ($ 42,245). Yakutat City , Sitka, Juneau, and Anchorage are

8740-429: The community, disseminating information about shelters and prepared food rations, passing messages of well-being between loved ones, and helping to reunite families. In the longer term, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers led the effort to rebuild roads, clear debris, and establish new townsites for communities that had been completely destroyed, at a cost of $ 110 million. The West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center

8855-410: The contiguous North American road system. The Interior is the largest region of Alaska; much of it is uninhabited wilderness. Fairbanks is the only large city in the region. Denali National Park and Preserve is located here. Denali , formerly Mount McKinley, is the highest mountain in North America and is also located here. The North Slope is mostly tundra peppered with small villages. The area

8970-559: The convergence of tropical warm water currents and frigid currents from Alaska creates a unique and abundant environment that serves as feeding and refuge grounds for numerous species. Several species of fish are protected within the kelp forests spanning the MPAs and Special Closure. These include California sheephead, Garibaldi (fish) , Bat ray , Moray eel , Horn shark , Leopard shark , kelp bass (Paralabrax clathratus), brightly coloured Nudibranch (sea slugs), and Giant sea bass , among many others. The cold and dark ocean depths of

9085-462: The damage done by the earthquake to the city. The team, called the Engineering and Geological Evaluation Group, was headed by Ruth A. M. Schmidt , a geology professor at the University of Alaska Anchorage . The team of scientists came into conflict with local developers and downtown business owners who wanted to immediately rebuild; the scientists wanted to identify future dangers to ensure that

9200-524: The earthquake was also reported from Florida and Texas . Alaska had never experienced a major disaster in a highly populated area before and had very limited resources for dealing with the effects of such an event. In Anchorage, at the urging of geologist Lidia Selkregg , the City of Anchorage and the Alaska State Housing Authority appointed a team of 40 scientists, including geologists, soil scientists, and engineers, to assess

9315-671: The east. It shares a western maritime border, in the Bering Strait , with Russia's Chukotka Autonomous Okrug . The Chukchi and Beaufort Seas of the Arctic Ocean lie to the north, and the Pacific Ocean lies to the south. Technically, it is a semi-exclave of the U.S., and is the largest exclave in the world. Alaska is the largest U.S. state by area, comprising more total area than the following three largest states of Texas , California , and Montana combined, and

9430-466: The economy; more than half of the state is federally-owned land containing national forests , national parks , and wildlife refuges . It is among the most irreligious states , one of the first to legalize recreational marijuana , and is known for its libertarian-leaning political culture, generally supporting the Republican Party in national elections. The Indigenous population of Alaska

9545-481: The four largest cities in the U.S. by area . As reflected in the 2020 United States census , Alaska has a total of 355 incorporated cities and census-designated places (CDPs). The tally of cities includes four unified municipalities, essentially the equivalent of a consolidated city–county . The majority of these communities are located in the rural expanse of Alaska known as " The Bush " and are unconnected to that contiguous North American road network. The table at

9660-637: The harvest to less than the increase achieved during closure, although at greatly reduced recovery rates. Some habitats and species are better prepared environmental changes or extremes. These include coral communities that handle high sea surface temperature (SST); areas with variable SSTs and carbonate chemistry and areas adjacent to undeveloped low-lying inland areas that coastal habitats can expand into as sea levels rise. Such areas constitute climate change refugia and can potentially better protect biodiversity than more fragile areas. They may also provide fishery benefits, since habitat loss from climate change

9775-536: The impact of fishing on the marine ecosystem. The environmental DNA metabarcoding biomonitoring tool has been used in Anacapa State Marine Reserve and other MPAs to increase the frequency of monitoring and safety of personnel. By using the eDNA metabarcoding biomonitoring tool, personnel with neither diving experience nor taxonomic training may obtain comparable and possibly more thorough results than Scuba-based surveys. A proposal to relocate groundfish to Anacapa State Marine Reserve from areas around oil platforms in

9890-421: The installation, maintenance, and temporary placement/removal of structures related to safety concerns. Anacapa State Marine Reserve is susceptible to specific marine navigation closures, encompassing an area of approximately one square mile, to minimize the disturbance of seabirds and marine mammals. The primary goal of Anacapa Island State Marine Reserve is to preserve the rich and varied marine ecosystem where

10005-432: The largest private landowner in Alaska in advertisements and other communications. Provisions of ANCSA allowing the corporations' land holdings to be sold on the open market starting in 1991 were repealed before they could take effect. Effectively, the corporations hold title (including subsurface title in many cases, a privilege denied to individual Alaskans) but cannot sell the land. Individual Native allotments are sold on

10120-659: The life history of focal species (e.g. home ranges, nursery grounds, migration corridors and spawning aggregations), and were located to accommodate movement patterns among them. Movement patterns (home ranges, ontogenetic shifts and spawning migrations) vary among and within species, and are influenced by factors such as size, sex, behaviour, density, habitat characteristics, season, tide and time of day. For example, damselfishes, butterflyfishes and angelfishes travel <0.1–0.5 km, while some sharks and tuna migrate over thousands of kilometres. Larval dispersal distances tend to be <5–15 km, and self-recruitment to new habitat

10235-782: The location of such special areas is unknown, or is too large to include in a reserve, management approaches such as seasonal capture and sales restrictions may provide some protection. Sea turtle nesting areas, dugong feeding areas, cetacean migratory corridors and calving grounds are examples of other special areas that can be protected seasonally. Other types of special areas include isolated habitats that have unique assemblages and populations, habitats that are important for endemic species and highly diverse areas. Isolated populations (e.g. those on remote atolls ) have high conservation value where they harbor endemic species and/or unique assemblages. A location or population 20–30 km from its nearest neighbor generally qualifies as isolated in

10350-756: The long-term. Short-term protections do not allow slow-recovering species to reach or maintain stable populations. In some Coral Triangle countries (e.g., Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands), short term protections are the most common form of traditional marine resource management. These protections can help address problems at lower trophic levels (e.g., herbivores) or allow spawning to succeed. Other reasons for adopting short-term protections include allowing communities to stockpile resources for feasts or close areas for cultural reasons. Short-term/periodic reserves also may function as partial insurance by enhancing overall ecosystem resilience against catastrophes. Reopened reserves can be protected by management controls that limit

10465-637: The low population density, most of the land is located in the Unorganized Borough . As the name implies, it has no intermediate borough government but is administered directly by the state government. In 2000, 57.71% of Alaska's area has this status, with 13.05% of the population. Anchorage merged the city government with the Greater Anchorage Area Borough in 1975 to form the Municipality of Anchorage, containing

10580-808: The most powerful earthquake recorded in North American history, and the second most powerful earthquake recorded in world history. The Good Friday earthquake lasted 4 minutes and 38 seconds. Six hundred miles (970 km) of fault ruptured at once and moved up to 60 ft (18 m), releasing about 500 years of stress buildup. Soil liquefaction , fissures, landslides, and other ground failures caused major structural damage in several communities and much damage to property. Anchorage sustained great destruction or damage to many inadequately earthquake-engineered houses, buildings, and infrastructure (paved streets, sidewalks, water and sewer mains, electrical systems, and other human-made equipment), particularly in

10695-423: The natural habitat for a large number of California sea lion and Harbor seal . High populations are supported by the mixture of warm waters from Mexico and cold waters from Alaska that mitigate their habitat and bring a multitude of fish that they feed on. The dense kelp forest also provides food and shelter for these mammals.   The seafloor of the reserve is a habitat for numerous species of crabs, including

10810-559: The northwest extremity of North America . Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii . Alaska is also considered to be the northernmost, westernmost, and easternmost (the Aleutian Islands cross the 180th meridian into the eastern hemisphere) state in the United States. It borders the Canadian territory of Yukon and the province of British Columbia to

10925-522: The often remote and roadless locations. The University of Alaska , as a land grant university , also owns substantial acreage which it manages independently. Another 44 million acres (18 million hectares) are owned by 12 regional, and scores of local, Native corporations created under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) of 1971. Regional Native corporation Doyon, Limited often promotes itself as

11040-412: The open market. Various private interests own the remaining land, totaling about one percent of the state. Alaska is, by a large margin, the state with the smallest percentage of private land ownership when Native corporation holdings are excluded. The Alaska Heritage Resources Survey (AHRS) is a restricted inventory of all reported historic and prehistoric sites within the U.S. state of Alaska; it

11155-588: The opposite side of Anacapa, leading to loss of life, and the wreck site remains undiscovered. The wreck site of the Avenger is approximately 120 feet (37 m) deep and 40 feet (12 m) away from the reef. The wreck lies on the sand and retains its aircraft shape despite the passage of years. The wreckage has become a focal point for marine life, attracting various fish species. The wreck offers an opportunity for deep diving, with average visibility ranging from 20–60 feet (6.1–18.3 m). Located within Anacapa SMR

11270-499: The public, government agencies, fisheries representatives, and conservation groups. With the support of data related to the benefits of the former Anacapa Ecological Reserve, the reserve network was implemented in April 2003. Anacapa Island State Marine Reserve, which incorporated the smaller Anacapa Ecological Reserve, was established as a Marine Protected Areas and re-established as part of the statewide MPA Network in 2012. As part of

11385-428: The rebuilt infrastructure would be safe. The team produced a report on May 8, 1964, just a little more than a month after the earthquake. The United States military, which has a large active presence in Alaska, also stepped in to assist within moments of the end of the quake. The U.S. Army rapidly re-established communications with the lower 48 states, deployed troops to assist the citizens of Anchorage, and dispatched

11500-602: The region returned home praising its natural splendor. The Alcan Highway , built during the war, and the Alaska Marine Highway System , completed in 1963, made the state more accessible than before. Tourism has become increasingly important in Alaska, and today over 1.4 million people visit the state each year. With tourism more vital to the economy, environmentalism also rose in importance. The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) of 1980 added 53.7 million acres (217,000 km ) to

11615-514: The remaining land area, the state of Alaska owns 101 million acres (41 million hectares), its entitlement under the Alaska Statehood Act . A portion of that acreage is occasionally ceded to the organized boroughs presented above, under the statutory provisions pertaining to newly formed boroughs. Smaller portions are set aside for rural subdivisions and other homesteading-related opportunities. These are not very popular due to

11730-467: The reserve provide the optimal environmental conditions for the growth of corals , sponges and invertebrates. The latter have an important role within the ecosystem of the territory. They have a three-dimensional shape that creates the space where the local marine fauna live, grow, and reproduce. The survival of this marine species is at risk because of several factors related to pollution and human activities. While fishing certain groundfish species, there

11845-620: The reserves. The number of species in each study ranged from 1 to 250 and the reserves ranged in size from 0.006 to 800 square kilometers (0.002 to 310 square miles). In 2014, the World Parks Association adopted a target of establishing no-take zones for 30% of each habitat globally. A review of studies of 34 families (210 species) of coral reef fishes demonstrates that the design of a marine reserve has important implications for its ability to protect habitat and focal species. Effective reserves included habitats that support

11960-555: The several landslide zones along Knik Arm . Two hundred miles (320 km) southwest, some areas near Kodiak were permanently raised by 30 feet (9 m). Southeast of Anchorage, areas around the head of Turnagain Arm near Girdwood and Portage dropped as much as 8 feet (2.4 m), requiring reconstruction and fill to raise the Seward Highway above the new high tide mark. In Prince William Sound , Port Valdez suffered

12075-409: The sheep crab ( Loxorhynchus grandis ). Numerous starfish and invertebrates live among the kelp, coral, and sponges of the reserve. Onshore, the rocky cliffs are surrounded by a Special Closure, which limits access to protect one of the world's largest breeding colonies of California Brown Pelican . Brown Pelicans and Brandt's cormorants swarm in the area. Several species of bird that once bred in

12190-470: The state's entire land area. The area not part of any borough is referred to as the Unorganized Borough . The Unorganized Borough has no government of its own, but the U.S. Census Bureau in cooperation with the state divided the Unorganized Borough into 11 census areas solely for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation. A recording district is a mechanism for management of

12305-522: The voice of calm from her temporary post within the Anchorage Public Safety Building. She was effectively designated as the public safety officer by the city's police chief. Chance provided breaking news of the catastrophic events that continued to develop following the magnitude 9.2 earthquake, and she served as the voice of the public safety office, coordinating response efforts, connecting available resources to needs around

12420-476: The world . If it was an independent nation, it would be the 18th largest country in the world; almost the same size as Iran . With its myriad of islands, Alaska has nearly 34,000 miles (55,000 km) of tidal shoreline. The Aleutian Islands chain extends west from the southern tip of the Alaska Peninsula . Many active volcanoes are found in the Aleutians and in coastal regions. Unimak Island , for example,

12535-520: The world's largest tides occurs in Turnagain Arm , just south of Anchorage, where tidal differences can be more than 35 feet (10.7 m). Alaska has more than 409,000 natural lakes at least one hectare or bigger. Marshlands and wetland permafrost cover 188,320 square miles (487,700 km ) (mostly in northern, western and southwest flatlands). Glacier ice covers about 28,957 square miles (75,000 km ) of Alaska. The Bering Glacier

12650-615: The zone no longer do so, including the Rhinoceros Auklet and the Cassins Auklet . Anacapa SMR includes habitats for a range of cetaceans, including dolphins , porpoises , whales , and orcas . Whales are of major importance both for the natural ecosystem and the tourism economy of the territory. There are 27 different species of whales in the area, including blue whales , humpback whales , gray whales , fin whales , and pilot whales . Anacapa State Marine Reserve

12765-512: Was extremely limited or unavailable until statehood took effect in 1959. Starting in the 1890s and stretching in some places to the early 1910s, gold rushes in Alaska and the nearby Yukon Territory brought thousands of miners and settlers to Alaska. From 1879 to 1920, Alaska produced a cumulative total of over $ 460,000,000 ($ 6,691,927,500 inflation-adjusted) of mineral production. Alaska was officially incorporated as an organized territory in 1912. Alaska's capital, which had been in Sitka until 1906,

12880-492: Was formed as a direct response to the disaster. Federal disaster relief funds paid for reconstruction as well as financially supporting the devastated infrastructure of Alaska's government, spending hundreds of millions of dollars that helped keep Alaska financially solvent until the discovery of massive oil deposits at Prudhoe Bay . At the order of the U.S. Defense Department , the Alaska National Guard founded

12995-408: Was headquartered in Sitka. For most of Alaska's first decade under the United States flag, Sitka was the only community inhabited by American settlers. They organized a "provisional city government", which was Alaska's first municipal government, but not in a legal sense. Legislation allowing Alaskan communities to legally incorporate as cities did not come about until 1900, and home rule for cities

13110-779: Was moved north to Juneau . Construction of the Alaska Governor's Mansion began that same year. European immigrants from Norway and Sweden also settled in southeast Alaska, where they entered the fishing and logging industries. During World War II , the Aleutian Islands Campaign focused on Attu , Agattu and Kiska , all of which were occupied by the Empire of Japan . During the Japanese occupation, an American civilian and two United States Navy personnel were killed at Attu and Kiska respectively, and nearly

13225-482: Was the first to actively colonize the area beginning in the 18th century, eventually establishing Russian America , which spanned most of the current state and promoted and maintained a native Alaskan Creole population. The expense and logistical difficulty of maintaining this distant possession prompted its sale to the U.S. in 1867 for US$ 7.2 million (equivalent to $ 157 million in 2023). The area went through several administrative changes before becoming organized as

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